Consumer-owned banks have topped the list of Australia’s best banks, taking up four of the top five places on the prestigious Forbes list.
Newcastle Permanent was named as the second-best bank in Australia and the best of all banks that are owned in Australia. ING Group, which operates in Australia but is owned in the Netherlands, took the top spot.
The next three banks were all consumer-owned: Greater Bank, Heritage Bank and Beyond Bank rounded out the top five.
In creating the ranking, Forbes spoke to 43,000 customers across 28 countries to rate them based on a variety of factors including customer satisfaction, trust, fees, digital services and financial advice.
“This is quite a remarkable award for Newcastle Permanent, for the Hunter region where we are headquartered, and for regional NSW,” Newcastle Permanent CEO, Bernadette Inglis told Australian Broker.
“To be recognised through this international award program as an industry leader is quite the achievement for not only Newcastle Permanent, but for the entire customer-owned banking sector.”
“To be named top Australian-owned financial institution amongst Forbes World’s Best Banks 2021 is evidence of the strength and value customer-owned financial institutions offer financial services consumers.”
“We are proud to have been named as the top Australian-owned financial institution and second overall in Australia by over 43,000 customers surveyed globally.”
“This shows our Hunter-led organisation has continued to focus on delivering the best banking services for customers and communities across its regional NSW footprint despite the challenges of the last year.”
“At 118 years old, Newcastle Permanent supports over a quarter of a million customers across regional and rural NSW, Sydney, interstate and overseas. It is wonderful to know that customers across the globe positively recognise Newcastle Permanent’s performance against a range of considerations, including general satisfaction, trust, fees, digital services and financial advice.”
